Victron Centaur Charger - broken temperature sensor?

[chasroberts]

I wonder if anyone has any knowledge regarding the temperature sensor on a Centaur 12/40 charger which is fitted to a boat I have purchased? As soon as I connect 230V to the charger; the fans (both) start to run and then run continuously. The charger is connected to 2 battery banks both 12v (one battery @230Ah and a bank of 3 @230Ah total 960Ah). I appreciate that this charger is well below that recommended for a bank of this size but budgetary constraints mean that, for the moment at least, that I have what I have.

I assume that the problem is with the internal temperature sensor, but this is just an assumption. Trawling the internet has offered no solution or advice so far.

I have checked throughout the charger for hotspots but none are apparent with the largest temperature differential being about 2C above ambient level. This includes the heat sink.

The batteries all appear to be charging fine and are all less than 10 months olds.

I have tried emailing Victron directly but after 10 days have received no response.

Any thoughts on how to proceed would be gratefully received.

Many thanks in advance.

Chas

 

[paulajayne]

Are the batteries going into Float?

 

[vas]

two Qs,

a. how many amps is it charging at (I assume it has the Amp meter on the fascia) when you plug in shore power?
b. have you checked that there is a temp sensor there? Not all of them have, is there an extra thin cable out of the box going to a pos or neg pole?

as paulajayne above implies, if your batteries need 30-40A, it's obvious that the fans are going to be on, what happens when the batteries are fully charged and you connect shore power?


V.

 

[pvb]

The fan is controlled by both temperature and current sensors, so it's likely that your house bank is accepting enough current to persuade the charger it needs cooling.

 

[chasroberts]

Thanks for the quick replies. When first switched on the gauge jumps to maximum and then fall back to 2 or 3amp within about 30 seconds. There is no additional small cable from the charger itself but the system has a Victron 'smart' meter in the wheelhouse via a shunt and a data cable.

The fan comes on as soon as the charger is connected to 230V and stays on until it is disconnected. The batteries are fully charged, as far as I am aware, and have very little load on them at the moment.

Would the fan operate via the current sensor even when only drawing 2 or 3 amps?

Thaks again guys.

 

[pvb]

Would the fan operate via the current sensor even when only drawing 2 or 3 amps?

I wouldn't expect it to.

Are you sure that the meter is monitoring the true charging current, as only 2-3A into a 960Ah bank is very small indeed.

 

[paulajayne]

Take a voltage reading at the batteries if circa 13 volts then I would guess batteries are in float.

ALSO:-

Three-stage charging, with temperature compensation The Centaur charges at bulk rate until the output has reduced to 70% of the rated Amps, at which a 4 hour timer begins. After the timed period the charger switches to float rate.

 

[vas]

agree shouldn't run the fan with 2-3A on the centaur needle...
BTW, what's the temps like where the centaur is installed?

regarding the BMV in the wheelhouse, since it's a new to you boat, make sure that all negatives go through that shunt before reaching the battery, else it maybe misreading or it may be misconfigured, but that's another issue altogether.
Unless it's a smart charger, take the lid off and check that everything looks okay inside as well as check the battery type settings on the dip switches.

either way, if it's doing what it's meant to, and considering that at some point you'll change it for a larger one, do nothing for now!

V.

 

[chasroberts]

Sorry just read my original post. Battery bank total for the house bank is 690Ah not 960Ah. With the engine battery at 230Ah makes a total of 920Ah.

The fascia meter of the charger is not very well delineated so the 2/3A was a guesstimate, but certainly well under 5A. The batteries all read round 13V which is wh I think they're fully charged. If I disconnect the house bank and leave just the engine battery connected might this reduce the load to a level where the charge sensor (if that's what's causing the fans to run) would disconnect the fans? Worth a try?

Thanks guys.

 

[vas]

for sure nothing to loose, will just justify your buying a larger charger
checking that it does indeed have a terminal to wire a bat temp sensor, worth buying one and installing it. Mind Centaurs being around for v.long time, so better open the lid and see if there's a bat sensor terminal somewhere in there.

 

[chasroberts]

so better open the lid and see if there's a bat sensor terminal somewhere in there.

Any ideas on how it would be marked or where it would be within the unit? Have tried to find a schematic but no success.

Temps within the engine room where the batteries and the charger are located are ambient (ie bloody chilly at the moment)!

I will also check the settings and dip switches tomorrow.

Chas

 

[vas]

I have a feeling these Centaurs don't have a bat temp terminal. Online manual doesn't mention anything but does have a half pcb cutout showing where the dip switches for setting the right bat type are.
https://www.victronenergy.com/Manuals/Centaur/ISM001001000.pdf
If mine was in a more accessible spot in the garage, I'd remove the lid and have a look, can try that tomorrow if you want.

V.

 

[ghostlymoron]

I wonder if anyone has any knowledge regarding the temperature sensor on a Centaur 12/40 charger which is fitted to a boat I have purchased? As soon as I connect 230V to the charger; the fans (both) start to run and then run continuously. The charger is connected to 2 battery banks both 12v (one battery @230Ah and a bank of 3 @230Ah total 960Ah). I appreciate that this charger is well below that recommended for a bank of this size but budgetary constraints mean that, for the moment at least, that I have what I have.

I assume that the problem is with the internal temperature sensor, but this is just an assumption. Trawling the internet has offered no solution or advice so far.

I have checked throughout the charger for hotspots but none are apparent with the largest temperature differential being about 2C above ambient level. This includes the heat sink.

The batteries all appear to be charging fine and are all less than 10 months olds.

I have tried emailing Victron directly but after 10 days have received no response.

Any thoughts on how to proceed would be gratefully received.

Many thanks in advance.

Chas

I should try ringing victron - your much more likely to get a reply. Emails are easy to ignore.

 

[chasroberts]

If mine was in a more accessible spot in the garage, I'd remove the lid and have a look, can try that tomorrow if you want.

Thanks Vas. I have seen where the dip switches are. They are inside the bottom panel on the left. I will be checking them tomorrow but many thanks for the offer.

Chas

 

[chasroberts]

I should try ringing victron - your much more likely to get a reply. Emails are easy to ignore.

You're probably right. Must admit I'm a bit disappointed. Such a poor after sales service would make me think twice about replacing the current unit with another Victron.

let's see what the say.....

Chas

 

[VicS]

You're probably right. Must admit I'm a bit disappointed. Such a poor after sales service would make me think twice about replacing the current unit with another Victron.

let's see what the say.....

Chas

I imagine that they will

• confirm that there is no provision for a battery temperature sensor
• tell you that a battery temperature sensor is available as an accessory for the battery monitor
• tell you that the fan is controlled by an internal temperature sensor
• tell you that there are no user serviceable components within the charger
• tell you that a 12/40 charger is too small for your battery bank
• advise you to fit a 12/100 charger

All of which you know anyway.

 

[PaulRainbow]

I imagine that they will

• confirm that there is no provision for a battery temperature sensor
• tell you that a battery temperature sensor is available as an accessory for the battery monitor
• tell you that the fan is controlled by an internal temperature sensor
• tell you that there are no user serviceable components within the charger
• tell you that a 12/40 charger is too small for your battery bank
• advise you to fit a 12/100 charger

All of which you know anyway.

All true.

I imagine that they will also tell you that for support you need to go through the official dealer network.

These people might be able to advise: Contact Energy Solutions | Energy Solutions

 

[vas]

• tell you that a battery temperature sensor is available as an accessory for the battery monitor

for the record, only true if you have BMV702 or BMV712, the ones ending with 0 don't have this feature (afaik)
Further, unless v.modern Victron equipment interlinked, info from the BMV wont be passing over to the charger...

what I'm trying to remember is if my Centaur fans were on all the time or only when charging empty batteries, since I really haven't used it for the last 3yrs (hence removing it and fitting a multi charger/inverter) I cannot remember!
I have a feeling it was on all the time though, but then whenever it was on, the generator was running so ambient in the e/r was high

 

[pvb]

• tell you that the fan is controlled by an internal temperature sensor

... and also by a current sensor.

 

[RichardS]

what I'm trying to remember is if my Centaur fans were on all the time or only when charging empty batteries, since I really haven't used it for the last 3yrs (hence removing it and fitting a multi charger/inverter) I cannot remember!
I have a feeling it was on all the time though, but then whenever it was on, the generator was running so ambient in the e/r was high

I have a Victron Energy Centaur 12/40 and the fans run quietly all the time, even if the batteries are fully charged and the ammeter on the front is registering less than 5 amps. It has always been like this since brand new.

Richard